Bar Table, Bar Furniture and Bar Stools

The term Poseur Table is a relatively modern invention and refers to tall bar tables at a height that allows a drinker to either stand by or sit at a tall bar table. Poseur tables are usually around 42 inches (106 centimetres) high from floor to table top and are fabricated in real wood, steel, aluminium, cast iron or a combination of these. If sitting at the poseur table tall bar stools or tall bar chairs are available at a seat height of 27 to 29" (69 to 74cm) which is a comfortable seated height for this height of table. There are a great range of styles and types of poseur tables available on the market which gives the proprietor of the restaurant, hotel or bar a wide variety to choose from to fit in perfectly with the style of their interior decor.

The cheapest poseur tables available have aluminium bases with either three of four feet with a single aluminium tube for the pedestal. The tops are usually available either chipboard faced with stainless steel veneer which can be used indoors or outside or with slatted wood which is more suitable for indoor use. This type of poseur table is available from under £30 but is not the most stable as the aluminium bases are very light. Tall aluminium chairs are available to complement the tables, usually with either aluminium slats or wooden slats or woven plastic rattan. It is advisable to choose these tall aluminium chairs that have welded frames rather than riveted frames. The riveted frames are a little cheaper but have the tendency to become loose as the rivets move against the soft aluminium frame when people sit on them.

This can be a real problem if they fail as a customer falling from a high bar chair is never going to be a happy customer!

Poseur tables used in a traditional pub setting tend to have either single or double wooden pedestal frames with wooden tops or decorative cast iron pedestals reproduced from classic Colebrookedale designs from the Victorian age.

The most popular design in cast iron is the 'Dolphin' base which as described in the title has two dolphins at the base with a decorative stem rising to either a single top at 42" or with 2 levels, 42" and 52" with the smaller second top having a brass circular drinks rail around it's edge. This drinks rail is more for decorative effect than to keep drinks glasses safe. This poseur table is not very wide at the base so it is best to secure it to the floor. These bases are designed with 3 circular holes cast as washers protruding from each of the three feet at the base and it is easy to use these holes to screw the base to the floor. Alternatively if the floor is not wooden or the proprietor does not want his or her floor used in this way, the base can be bolted onto a 60cm or 68 cm table top which then gives very good stability.

All wooden poseur tables for traditional pub use usually have a turned pedestal rising from four flat wooden feet in a cruciform pattern.

These tall bar tables can be purchased as single tables with one top, usually 27 or 30" diameter at around 42" height. Alternatively they can be bought with tops at two levels, the first top at 42" and the second at 52". The second level uses a top of smaller diameter, usually 14".

Again the customer can specify a circular drinks rail to add an extra bit of colour to the whole design. There are many designs of bar stool available for these traditional tall bar tables. One of the most popular is the tall Captains chair with the seat at around 28" height and a wraparound bentwood back supported on six turned spindles rising from the chair seat. These bar stools are strongest when made from European beechwood, although cheaper rubberwood versions are made in Malaysia and China but do not have anything like the longevity of the beechwood chair.

Alternatively backless bar stools are often chosen because they take up much less room when set around the bar and are nearly as comfortable when specified with a thickly upholstered seat pad in velvet or flateave fabric. The most popular backless barstool has turned legs for decoration and can be purchased with brass or chrome plated footrails which looks really attractive against the colour of the wooden legs. Previously pub owners would nearly always choose dark oak or dark mahogany finish furniture but in recent years the taste has shifted to lighter colours, either walnut, antique pine or light oak to give a brighter more cheery and inviting look to their interior decor.

For the most modern venues many proprietors often choose chrome frames on simple round or square bases with a single pedestal rising from the base. This looks very effective with a real wood top or can have the very decorative high pressure laminate faced tops made by Werzalit gmbh in Germany or the Isotop Corporation in Malaysia. As this kind of top has a plastic veneer any design can be printed on it so both of these Companies offer a great range of colours and patterns and for an extra cost they will even produce tops with the name of the venue printed onto the design. This kind of top is extremely hardwearing, totally waterproof and very scratch and heat resistant. To complement the chrome poseur tables many designs of chrome plated steel barstools can be found, among the most attractive being copies of bentwood tall chairs where the bent wooden parts are replicated in steel and even the taper at the base of the legs can now be achieved giving a very elegant and light look while being stronger than the wooden chair that they are imitating.

A comfortable upholstered seat pad on the bar stool adds to the attractive look and encourages the guests to stay longer. If wooden barstools are chosen to stand by the chrome poseur tables, ones with backs look most inviting and a light colour wood always looks good when combined with a chrome table's base.

Whatever poseur table style is chosen, it is very important to satisfy oneself that the base is stable and secure, because a tall table with too light a base will tip over very easily if knocked and at best this is embarrassing for staff and customers alike and at worst can be quite dangerous as the edge of the top hits the floor with some force.